THE BOAT TEST
Research
project
Words
ADAM PORTER
Pictures
ANDY
R ANNAble
W
hen someone tells you that
preparation is the key to a
good finish, it’s liable to
make your heart sink.
26 December 2015 Canal Boat
Some people tend to rush into having their boat built (and who can
blame them) but the smart thing is to spend time on research and
preparation – and to give some thought to your future boating
After all, we’re all a bit impatient to get to
the end result. But it’s true – whether
you’re painting a wall, writing a novel, or
having a boat built; if you want a good
finish, it’s best to put the prep in first.
This boat, Krystyna, is proof. Krysia and
Colin Everall did plenty of research,
including collecting ideas from boat tests
canalboat.co.uk
KRYSTYNA
£125,000
LENGTH: 57ft
STYLE: Cruiser
4
BERTHS: LAYOUT: Reverse
Beta 43hp
POWER: like this one, to help them choose
the look and feel of the boat as well
as individual pieces of equipment.
They had friends who lived aboard,
so could get advice on what worked
and what didn’t; and they looked at
dozens of used boats to see different
layouts and designs.
Of course, finding a boat builder who
can turn your ideas into reality is also
canalboat.co.uk
important, so the couple visited several
shell builders and boat-fitters before
making their final decisions. And they
made good choices – a Nick Thorpe shell
and a fit-out by Bourne Boats – because
the boat they’ve ended up with meets
their exacting standards.
It also caught our eye at the Crick Boat
Show as a great example of a quality
boat at a reasonable price.
EXTERIOR
One of the couple’s main requirements
for this 57-footer was a large cruiser
stern deck, but they still wanted the boat
to look fairly traditional, so they’ve gone
for a rounded rather that squared-off
stern and there’s a hint of rise in the
back counter.
The rear deck is surrounded by a wide
wooden rail, and the couple have added
Canal Boat December 2015 27
THE BOAT TEST
a pram cover to give somewhere to dry
their dog on wet days.
One of Colin’s special requests was
that the diesel filler be recessed to avoid
spills. Other requirements included an
extra long stern hatch for ease of access
to the boat and a finger-grip along the
handrail. There’s a pigeon box in the
roof over the galley fitted with prisms
to let in plenty of extra light without the
condensation so often associated with
a Houdini hatch.
The bow is Nick Thorpe’s standard
offering; the couple would have liked a
Josher style, however, the extra length
would have cost them living space. As it
has turned out, the bow is still a nice
shape and looks rather pretty on the
water. The cratch board has been
decorated with diamonds which provides
a touch of the traditional.
The gas locker is in the nose and
there are well deck lockers each side
to provide somewhere to sit; each has
LED lights set into the sides. There’s
also a small table at the front. The deck
has an access hatch for the bow thruster
and a stainless steel water tank
underneath.
The leading edge of the cabin has a
THE OWNERS
Colin and Krysia Everall
first saw their boat in the
water at the Crick Show after
it had arrived by lorry direct
from the builder. Then, once
the show was over, they set
off on their maiden voyage.
Since then, they’ve not only
taken the boat to its home
mooring on the Kennet &
Avon, they’ve used it almost
every weekend too.
Colin is a self employed IT
consultant, while Krysia is a
freelance hairdresser. But
she’s also artistic in other
ways and has a sideline
in picture framing, which
means she knows good
quality joinery when she
sees it. She almost stumbled
into another career, when
a visitor to Crick wanted to
commission her to do the
interior design on their boat.
At the moment this is a
holiday boat, but the couple
have a five-year plan to wind
built-in grab handle, but the couple
opted for a simple curve, rather than
Nick Thorpe’s usual barley twist design.
There are sockets for a 240-volt shoreline
at both the bow and the stern, so a long
cable won’t be needed.
Krysia was responsible for the colour
scheme and the couple mixed a couple
of different shades of grey to get exactly
the one they wanted. It’s rather striking
and set off well by black handrails with
down work and eventually
live on board. So they’ve
been careful to future-proof
the boat so it will work as a
liveaboard.
coach lines in cream and dark red. The
paintwork was completed in-house at
Bourne; it’s not surprising the finish is
excellent, as the firm’s founder, Wayne
Payton, is a coach painter with many
years’ experience.
Krysia chose black window and
porthole frames to complement the
scheme. There are chrome mushroom
vents and the roof also sports a solar
panel and a very discreet 3G antenna.
It’s all very neat and light in rear
saloon, sofa turns into spare bed
canalboat.co.uk
Krysia wanted a clean look, so no shelves.
Quartz worktops are less likely to crack
LAYOUT AND FIT-OUT
This is a reverse layout boat, with a rear
saloon including an L-shaped dinette.
The galley is in the middle, with a
walk-through shower room beyond and
the cabin is at the bow.
Krysia masterminded the interior, and
has come up with a light, bright scheme
that is very attractive. Oak is used
throughout, but the cabin sides are lined
with panels of cream faux leather, which
gives an airy, contemporary feel and
should be hard wearing. The trim
bordering the panels was too scalloped
to fit with Krysia’s clean modern design,
so the builders at Bourne trimmed it
down for her.
There’s more faux leather on the
ceiling, which also sports a central
feature made from oak. This has
concealed LED lighting which washes
the ceiling in light.
In the more private areas of the boat
‘The extra-long hatch
means there’s no danger
of banging your head as
you go down the steps from
the stern into the saloon’
canalboat.co.uk
(the shower room and the cabin) the
ceiling changes to oak tongue and
groove. The floor throughout is
hardwearing Amtico in an oak finish.
Folding hooks are a neat
solution to hang items
SALOON AND DINETTE
The extra-long hatch means there’s no
danger of banging your head as you go
down the steps from the stern deck into
the saloon. All the treads lift for storage.
Beside the steps there is a range of
cupboards. On one side there’s the
electrical cupboard and a wardrobe, and
opposite, there’s an airing cupboard with
the calorifier in the bottom.
In the saloon proper, a Lockgate
Reflex diesel stove sits on one side on
an attractive sparkly quartz hearth
with a drawer underneath, while on
the other side, there’s a full height
corner unit housing a flat screen TV
which can be pulled out on a bracket,
and a USB socket.
Underneath there’s a sound bar
which was chosen by Colin after Krysia
vetoed the idea of having speakers set
into the ceiling. They also decided
against some features we’ve seen on
previous Bourne boats, such as nauticalstyle lips on shelf edges, and turned
finials – none of which would have fitted
with the clean look they were after.
A versatile folding table is stored under
the gunwales, and there’s also an under
gunwale cupboard which provides far
more storage than you might think.
The L-shaped dinette, upholstered in
an attractive grey fabric, is on the
opposite side. There are drawers and
other storage in the base, and a pull-out
section means it converts easily and
quickly into a guest bed.
Canal Boat December 2015 29
THE BOAT TEST
Definitely a different way of doing the
shower room basin, we rather like it
Grey curtains and grey column radiators
with shiny chrome valves complete the
modern look. The radiators were the
result of extensive internet research,
not just for the look, but to find units
the right size.
GALLEY
The clean look continues in the galley,
where Krysia wanted cupboards rather
than open shelves, doors hiding
appliances and no high level units.
You’d certainly enjoy
a shower here
There’s more sparkling black quartz
(a material that is much less likely to
crack than granite as it doesn’t suffer
from the same fault lines), with an inset
stainless steel sink by Rangemaster.
Underneath this there’s a full-size
washing machine; the full-size fridge
and separate freezer are 12-volt models
chosen because the couple didn’t want
to have to have the inverter turned on
all the time.
For a touch of style, small blue LEDs
are set into the kickboards.
Cooking is by a stylish three-burner
hob from Thetford, a full-size Candy gas
fan oven set at eye level and a Bosch
microwave above.
There are glazed side hatches each
side, which, like the glazed doors at the
stern and the bow, have integral blinds
built into the double glazing. They’re
raised and lowered by a magnet – a
really neat solution.
SHOWER ROOM
The quadrant shower is large at 800mm,
with more of Krysia’s design flare on
show. The cubicle is lined with laminate
shower board, but she specified vertical
stripes of black and white. There are
cupboards and shelves alongside and
some clever folding hooks that were
sourced on the internet.
30 December 2015 Canal Boat
The Thetford cassette loo has a
porcelain bowl and electric flush, and is
one of the items spotted in a previous
boat test. It doesn’t have the usual back
panel, giving a much more normal (ie
‘non-cassette’) look; for some reason,
these loos don’t feature in the catalogues
and have to be specially ordered.
A corner unit provides storage and
carries a smart white basin. A large
mirror fills the wall above, and has
concealed LED lighting.
CABIN
Krysia was determined that neither of
them would have to sleep tucked under
the gunwale or pressed up against the
wall, so the cabin features a cross bed.
It’s easier to make than many we’ve seen:
a unit opposite the main part of the bed
has a drop down panel which completes
the base, and the infill part of the
mattress comes with it. By burrowing
slightly into the walls under the
gunwales, they’ve managed to make it
a full king size.
There’s storage in the main part of
the bed base, and this too is easy to
access as the slatted base lifts on gas
struts. There are bedside cabinets and
a wide range of wardrobes. The steps up
to the well deck also have lifting treads
for storage.
canalboat.co.uk
THE BOAT TEST
‘When it comes to turning
around, once the turn has
been started, it just keeps
on going, even without
using the bow thruster’
TECHNICAL
This boat is powered by the ubiquitous
Beta 43, chosen because Colin wanted to
be confident of having enough power on
rivers as well as canals. Access to the
engine is by lifting deck boards which
extend the whole length of the deck.
There are two, the bigger of which is
large enough to be slightly ungainly,
but once they’re up, you can see that
everything has been installed very
neatly and there’s plenty of room around
the engine.
Colin has also had LED lights installed
in the engine bay so he can see what he’s
doing if, for example, he’s changing the
oil in the rain with the pram cover up.
There’s a sizeable bank of seven 110Ah
batteries for the domestic supply; it’s
Bourne’s typical specification and means
there’s plenty of scope for mooring up
It might not look it, but the
cross bed is a full king size
canalboat.co.uk
for a day without having to run the
engine. That’s particularly true on this
boat, which has a 240W Panasonic solar
panel on the roof, to top up the batteries.
Colin’s research found it was one of the
most efficient panels on the market.
There’s also a battery for the engine, and
two for the 75kgf Vetus bow thruster.
There’s a Webasto diesel boiler for
heating to complement the Reflex stove.
In addition, a heat exchanger on the
engine means that the radiators can be
warmed up while on the move. It’s a
good way of making use of excess heat
from the engine and it’s always been a
surprise that more boats don’t have one
– particularly if you’re a fan of boating in
colder weather.
ON THE WATER
Our trip on Krystyna might not have been
the longest, but it had plenty of proper
challenges. We winded twice and had to
reverse a couple of hundred yards with
boats moored both sides and the boat
performed very well indeed. It sits in the
water nicely and swims well, it responds
to the tiller and goes exactly where
pointed. And when it comes to turning
around, once the turn has started, it just
keeps on going (even without using the
BOAT BUILDERS
Bourne is
a family
firm, led
by the
father and
son team
of Wayne
and Daniel Payton. Wayne started the firm in
2004; he’s a coach painter by trade but had
also worked for other boat-builders. Daniel
joined the company a couple of years ago
after finishing university.
The company is based at Rode Heath and
employs another eight staff. Over the years,
it has built more than 30 boats. A fairly
recent development is that they can now
build their own shells.
While Bourne is based close to the Trent
& Mersey, it’s not quite close enough for
the boats to be launched directly. Krystyna
was taken to the Crick Show to be put in the
water, but others travel only a quarter of a
mile by road – to the car park of the local
canalside pub, where they can be craned
into the water, often with quite a crowd of
onlookers.
THE BOAT TEST
bow thruster). In reverse, the bow
thruster comes into its own because it’s
powerful enough to steer the boat.
The rear deck is spacious, with plenty
of room for the crew and the broad
wooden rail provides somewhere to
perch. LED lights are set underneath the
rail for night-time socialising, or for when
the pram cover is up.
At the helm, the tiller is light and the
Morse control isn’t too low down (which
can be the case on cruiser sterns). The
bow thruster controls (on the same pillar
as the Morse) are easy enough to reach,
but out of the way of accidental knocks.
One thing that’s very noticeable is how
quiet the engine is. It makes for very
relaxed cruising.
CONCLUSION
Very neat, note
the heat exchanger
Design
This boat has a lot going for it. It’s on a
good shell with a stylish fit-out to a very
high standard; Bourne have done an
excellent job. And it’s a reasonable price,
too, at £125,000. That’s exactly what
you’d expect to pay for a boat of this
quality and with this level of equipment.
But it’s also a testament to the amount
of prep put in by the owners. They did
everything right when they were
planning the boat, gathering ideas and
sourcing equipment, and Krysia in
particular has used her artistic skills to
come up with a look that’s exceptionally
stylish. It meant that they knew exactly
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
what they wanted and how they were
going to achieve it.
This boat shows that if you think
everything through properly before you
start, you’re much more likely to end up
with a boat that really works.
CB
Verdict:
‘It’s a good boat,
cleverly designed
with an eye on
the future’
Krystyna 57ft £125,000
and decor
■ Solar panel: Panasonic 240W
midsummerenergy.co.uk
£330.00
■ Radiators: Milano Alpha
bestheating.co.uk
£90 each
■ Toilet: Thetford C263-S special order
through Midland Chandlers
midlandchandlers.co.uk
£565.
■ Folding hooks: Hafele
tandsarchitechtural.co.uk
£20.50 each
All prices are approximate and may depend
on supplier and any discounts obtained
32 December 2015 Canal Boat
Beta 43
Length:
57ft Engine:
01452
723492
Beam:
6ft 10in
betamarine.co.uk
Shell:
Nick Thorpe
nickthorpeboatbuilding.com Bow thruster: Vetus 75kgf Style:
Cruiser vetus.com
fit-out:
Oak INVERTER:
Victron 3kW Multiplus
LAYout:
Reverse victronenergy.com
BOURNE
Boat builders
Unit E&F, The Garage
Knutsford Road
Rode Heath, Staffordshire
ST7 3QT
01270 876321
bourneboatbuilders.co.uk
canalboat.co.uk